Jimmy John’s: Risking Chicago’s Safety with “Freaky Fast” Delivery?

There is nothing new about delivering food around the Chicago area and the option is increasing in popularity. With many residents foregoing a personal vehicle and with the difficult to predict weather making it hard to know when it is safe to leave home, many who live in the Chicagoland area opt to have their food brought to them. Pizza remains the most popular food to be delivered but other types of restaurants are getting into the game, including those who offer sandwiches.

A local chain, Jimmy John’s, is known across the country for its sub sandwiches that are made and delivered “freaky fast,” a catch phrase used by the restaurant in television, radio, and print advertising. While consumers who are ordering food from Jimmy John’s may appreciate the increased speed at which they receive their purchases, attention is now turning to the safety issues associated with delivering food in a fast manner, something that is being blamed for numerous car accidents in Illinois and around the nation.

Currently, there are more than 2,000 Jimmy John’s locations in 43 states, an impressive footprint for the chain which is headquartered in Champaign, Illinois. The vast majority of those stores are franchised which means that individual owners operate the stores on a day-to-day basis but are required to conform with conditions established by the Jimmy John’s headquarters so that the experience among stores is as identical as possible. While this means that customers can get their favorite sandwiches at any Jimmy John’s they choose to frequent, it also means that there are multiple layers of control and authority over individual employees, managers, and district workers who make the company run.

Our modern society is filled with consumers who expect instant gratification with their purchases and those users are unwilling to wait to be satisfied. This is one reason that food delivery – particularly fast delivery – is a sought-after commodity in Illinois and elsewhere as consumers want to be assured that they will receive their food as soon as possible after their delivery is placed. And it is one reason that experts say the slogan “freaky fast” appeals to so many consumers who want food delivered.

Recently, many collisions have made national news involving Jimmy John’s delivery drivers, and many have been blamed on those same drivers who were in a hurry to deliver sandwiches. As a result, Americans have been injured and even killed in these crashes, leaving their loved ones to wonder how a company can employ a policy that allows for dangerous driving.

Allegations among victims include claims that the company slogan “freaky fast” encourages or even requires delivery drivers to operate above the speed limit and in a reckless fashion that puts the safety of others at risk. Further, some of these victims state that Jimmy John’s actions are leading drivers to ignore stop signs, drive the wrong way down one-way roads, weave in and out of traffic in a dangerous manner, and take actions while behind the wheel that both ignore the law and put the delivery of a sandwich at a higher priority than public safety.

An incident in Tinley Park made headlines earlier this year after a Jimmy John’s driver was involved in a serious collision that left her trapped in her car, pinned under the dashboard and in need of rescue by emergency responders. A recent collisions in West Virginia caused a pedestrian to lose his life and a motorcyclist suffered permanent injuries in a Las Vegas crash with a Jimmy John’s driver.

Questions continue to exist in these cases, including whether Jimmy John’s is ignoring the rights of drivers and pedestrians who use public roadways when they employ delivery drivers to take sandwiches to customers in a “freaky fast” manner. For its part, Jimmy John’s has stated that it requires its drivers to follow all applicable road laws and at least one franchise owner has claimed the phrase “freaky fast” refers to the speed at which a sandwich is made and not to its policy related to delivery drivers. Regardless, car accidents continue to happen and Jimmy John’s drivers continue to be blamed for the harm that results.

If you were injured in a collisions involving a delivery driver or if someone you love was hurt or killed, you may be entitled to legal relief. The personal injury attorneys at Abels & Annes, P.C. are standing by 24 hours a day, seven days a week to take your call toll free at (855) 529-2442 or locally at (312) 924-7575. We offer a no-cost, no-obligation case consultation to all accident victims and everything discussed during the consultation will be kept confidential.

If you are in need of answers about your rights, call Abels & Annes, P.C. today and let us help you get the relief you deserve.

We serve the following localities: Cook County, Berwyn, Chicago, Cicero, Evanston, Tinley Park, DuPage County, Aurora, Naperville, Wheaton, Kane County, Elgin, Geneva, Lake County, Waukegan, Will County, Joliet, Winnebago County, and Rockford.